POETRY
On this page you will find poetry you may download to share with students and use in writing activities.
(Please include the author's name on all poetry you print from this site.)

COLOR POEMS
POPCORN POEMS
PIZZA SONG
PIZZA POEMS
SNOW POEMS
CHOCOLATE POEMS
UMBRELLA POEMS
PANCAKE POEM
THE CONTEST
PENGUIN RAP
SCHOOL POEMS

COLOR  POEMS
With homage to Mary O'Neill's classic collection of poetry, Hailstones and And Halibut Bones (Doubleday, 1961, 1989;  Gr. 1-5), the poems below celebrate color. Brainstorm with students what certain colors bring to mind and invite them to use this pattern to write their own color poems. For another collection of poetry that makes extensive use of color vocabulary, see A Song of Colors by Judy Hindley, illustrated by Mike Bostock (Candlewick, 1998;  Gr. 2-6). Share these poems on National Color Day (October 22) or any time!

If I could be red,
I'd shout my name from the chimney tops.
I'd flash a warning, "Clear the track!"
I'd sound the alarm, "Fire! Fire!"
If I could be red,
everyone would hear my name.

If I could be blue,
I'd etch my name in thin shadows on a frozen field.
I'd slip under the wing of a long-legged pond bird.
I'd glide the wake of an ocean leviathan.
If I could be blue,
everyone would find peace in my name.

If I could be green,
I'd grow my name in a secret garden.
I'd dance with leprechauns beneath a lucky leaf.
I'd blow my sweet breath in summer's hot face.
If I could be green,
everyone would feel refreshed by my name.

If I could be brown,
I'd sprinke my name across an upturned nose.
I'd ride the shoulders of a runaway boy no one can catch.
I'd warm the bed of a seed baby waiting to grow.
If I could be brown,
everyone would taste the sweetness of my name.

If I could be orange,
I'd carve my name on a face that glows in the dark.
I'd lick frost from the fingers of autumn night air.
I'd skulk about fields in watchful waiting.
If I could be orange,
everyone would watch out for me!

If I could be yellow,
I'd trickle my name over sweet roasted ears.
I'd bathe windows in my morning light.
I'd bury my chin in the downy neck of a barnyard baby.
If I could be yellow,
everyone would feel the warmth of my name.

If I could be gray,
I'd pencil my name on an elephant's back.
I'd billow from tall city stacks.
I'd gorge myself with rain 'til I burst.
If I could be gray,
everyone would feel the weight of my name.

If I could be purple,
I'd scroll my name in velvety folds of a royal robe.
I'd cling to a bursting bunch on a summery vine.
I'd scale the crags of snow-capped peaks.
If I could be purple,
everyone would know the richness of my name.

If I could be pink,
I'd paint my name on the inside of a shell.
I'd whisper my secret in a rabbit's ear.
I'd brush my petals on a baby's cheek.
If I could be pink,
everyone would be gentle with my name.

If I could be white,
I'd tat my name in frosty lace on a wintry pane.
I'd float sugar pillows on a steamy chocolate cup.
I'd gather the wind in my billows and blow across the sky.
If I could be white,
everyone would know the lightness of my name.

If I could be black,
I'd ink my name on the sleek body of a jungle cat.
I'd hide in the crown of a magician's silk hat.
I'd tuck myself in twists of a licorice rope.
If I could be black,
no one would find me.

POPCORN POEMS
Visit National Popcorn Poppin' Month (October 7) in the Activities Calendars for books and activities.

Discuss with students which of the five senses they use when making and eating popcorn. (They use ALL of the senses!) Conduct an experiment to see if this is true by popping and eating popcorn after sharing this riddle poem.

What Am I?

You can hear me when I cook.
You can see me if you look.
You can smell me when I fry.
You can taste me if you try.
You can touch me when I'm done.
Munching me is tons of fun!

You can eat me watching movies
or TV
or in the mall,
at the circus,
at the zoo,
or when someone's playing ball.

Sometimes I'm buttery.
Always I am light.
Bet you can't stop eating me
with just a single bite!
 

The poem below is ideal for choral reading and movement. As you read, have students sit on the first "Pop!" and stand on the second "Pop!" Or, alternate students with one standing, the next one sitting, the next one standing, and so on, so that some are standing on the first "Pop!" and some are sitting. On the final "pops," they can stand-sit, stand-sit until they get to the last "Pop!" at which time they are sitting. Build in speed as you read the poem, but gradually slow down as you reach the last "Pop!"

Dance of the Popcorn

Pop! Pop! says the popcorn
I'm a hard and yellow seed
Pop! Pop! says the popcorn
A hot temperature I need
Pop! Pop! says the popcorn
Pop, popping in the pan
Pop! Pop! says the popcorn
Catch me dancing if you can
Pop! Pop! says the popcorn
I am fluffy, big, and white
Pop! Pop! says the popcorn
Can you wait to take a bite?
Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!
Pop!          Pop!
        Pop!            Pop!
                  Pop!
                            Pop!

PIZZA SONG
Enjoy National Pizza Month (October 6) in The Activities Calendar!

(Sing to the tune of “B-I-N-G-O.”)

We mix the dough
and toss it high
and press it in the pan
P-I-Z-Z-A
P-I-Z-Z-A
P-I-Z-Z-A
It’s pizza that we make!

We stir the sauce
tomatoes and spice
and spread it on the dough
__ -I-Z-Z-A
__ -I-Z-Z-A
__ -I-Z-Z-A
It’s pizza that we make!

We shred the cheese
All crumbly and white
And sprinkle it on the sauce
__-__-Z-Z-A
__-__-Z-Z-A
__-__-Z-Z-A
It’s pizza that we make!

We choose our toppings
One by one
And place them on the cheese
__-__-__-Z-A
__-__-__-Z-A
__-__-__-Z-A
It’s pizza that we make!

Into the oven
Our pizza goes
And patiently we wait.
__-__-__-__-A
__-__-__-__-A
__-__-__-__-A
It’s pizza that we make!

Our pizza’s cooked
Now cut it quick
A slice for you and me
__-__-__-__-__
__-__-__-__-__
__-__-__-__-__
It’s pizza that we EAT!

PIZZA POEMS

Acrostic poem - a poem in which the subject is spelled vertically and each line begins with a word that starts with the designated letter.
The word “pizza” or individual ingredients could be topics.

Concrete poem - words are written in a shape associated with the subject of the poem

SNOW POEMS
Perfect for the first day of winter (December 21) or any snowy day!

Acrostic poem - a poem in which the subject is spelled vertically and each line begins with a word that starts with the designated letter.

Any word associated with the winter season could be the topic.

H omemade
O ld-fashioned
T oasty
 
C ups
O f
C hocolate
O f course, marshmallows
A nd friends

Haiku – unrhymed Japanese poem traditionally about some aspect of nature. The form is typically three lines with the following syllable pattern: 5-7-5.

            Lacy skeletons
on my windowpane announce
            winter’s arrival

Concrete poem - words are written in a shape associated with the subject of the poem

List Poem - a free verse poem that describes or lists attributes of a particular topic. The poem below was written by a group of 14 third grade ELL students.

Snow

Cold
snowflakes
come from water
feel soft or hard
are crunchy to eat

look like vanilla ice cream
look like cotton candy
look like marshmallows
look like nail polish
look like falling stars
look like falling candies from a piñata cloud

Snowflakes look like a lion face
with fur all around and two eyes.

Sparkly,
Gently,
Twirly-whirly,
Quiet,
Silent,
Floating
Snow.

CHOCOLATE POEMS
Celebrate the founding of Hershey's Chocolate (February 9) with these tasty poems.

Acrostic poem - a poem in which the subject is spelled vertically and each line begins with a word that starts with the designated letter.
Any word associated with chocolate could be the topic.

UMBRELLA POEMS
Enjoy on Umbrella Day (February 10) or when the rain falls.

Haiku – unrhymed Japanese poem traditionally about some aspect of nature. The form is typically three lines with the following syllable pattern: 5-7-5.

       Umbrellas in the City
           Colorful flowers
pop open as raindrops paint
      the sky shades of gray

Concrete poem - words are written in a shape associated with the subject of the poem

PANCAKE POEM
M-m-m... on National Pancake Day (March 8)!

Concrete poem - words are written in a shape associated with the subject of the poem

THE CONTEST
Pop this poem in for National Bubble Blower's Week (March 23).

Max came by with a bag of gum.
Because he’s my friend, he offered me some.
But first, he challenged me to a test,
“Let’s see whose bubble is the best.
I can blow one as big as a horse.”
            “I can blow one bigger, of course.”
“How many pieces can you fit in one chew?”
            “Let’s start with ten,” and I popped in the first two.
I mooshed them and squooshed them
and worked them just so.
Max gave the command,
“Ready! Set! Blow!”
I blew slowly at first,
then with all of my might.
I blew until Max was no longer in sight.
            “Who’s winning?” I thought,
            “Who will know when to stop?”
My answer came in an ear-splattering POP!
“What happened?” said Max.
            “We exploded, I think.”
All around us, there floated sticky pieces of pink.
“I can’t see a thing,” shouted Max, “Are we dead?”
            “It’s just bubblegum on your eyeglasses,” I said.
There was pink on my shoes and pink in my hair.
There was even gum stuck to my underwear!
            “I’m in trouble,” I wailed, “when my mom sees this mess.”
But Max said, “Now we’ll never know who wins…unless…”

A gooey pink bag was still stuck to his thumb,
a bag with just enough bubble gum.
We looked at each other.
Max grinned
and then…
“Why don’t we each start with ten.”

PENGUIN RAP
Have fun with this on World Penguin Day (April 25).

We’re penguins on parade, and we dress so fine. We toboggan on the ice. We waddle in a line. We lay our eggs in a rookery. We like fish and krill for our cookery. We like the water, and we like the shore. To find us, just turn south at the equator. We toboggan on the ice. We waddle in a line. We’re penguins on parade and we dress so fine. Yeah, we dress so fine. We dress so fine…YEAH!

SCHOOL POEMS

An Apple for My Teacher

a little red house
with no windows for peeking
at the star inside

(Introduce this haiku without the title to see if students can guess what the "little red house" is.)

Lunch Box

I sit on the shelf
waiting my turn
listening to the endless
murmur of voices
shuffling of papers
safe-keeping my treasures
a sandwich
peanut butter perhaps
(sometimes with jelly)
carrot sticks
a banana or pear
a sweet treat
until I'm scooped up by my handle
rushed to a table
and, with the flip of a clasp,
smiled at.
In truth, I've been dropped
and stepped on
and spilled.

Any old sack can carry a treasure
but I am
lunch box.

Jump Rope Jingle

Knees bendin'
Feet tappin'
Arms twirlin'
Ears flappin'
Face smilin'
Hair slappin'
Brain pumpin'
Heart thumpin'
Thinkin' fit
Jump for it!
1..2..3..

(This poem is meant to be memorized and used a jump rope rhyme. Thanks to the fourth grade students at Elliott Elementary School in Lincoln, Nebraska, for their assistance with the ideas for this jump rope rhyme.)

Where's Your Homework?

My dog ate it.
My cat scratched it.
The wind blew it away.
My sister tore it.
The car ran over it.
I was kind of sick all day.
I didn't understand it.
My pencil broke.
My mom made me go out and play.
I ran out of paper.
It fell in my soup.
It's lost, I'm sorry to...
HEY!

I found it!